UNIST and Ulsan Metropolitan City will hold a business briefing on the infrastructure construction project in relation to seawater-based batteries and marine equipment demonstration, as part of the 2020 Regional Vitality Project that supports regional enterprises.
The briefing will be held at Ulsan Technopark Maegok Complex on May 22, 2020. Organized by UNIST and other participating organizations, the event invites related companies in the region. Meanwhile, there will be also a briefing session held under the supervision of Ulsan Technopark, with the aim of supporting internal combustion engine component companies and helping them transform their technology into high-value-added parts, such as EVs or autonomous vehicles.
Companies wishing to participate in the briefing session can visit the Korea ON-Line E-Procurement System or the websites of each executing organization for detailed information.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy (MOTIE) has been promoting the Regional Vitality Project to help the manufacturing industry recover after the coronavirus hit. It is to be initiated for 2 years, as the government’s top priority project to provide support for 11 nationwide projects with the use of government funding of KRW 30.5 billion.
The seawater battery, developed at UNIST is a device that uses sodium ion from the seawater to store and generate electricity. | Image Credit: Kyoungchae Kim
Ulsan Metropolitan City has been selected to carry out two projects, namely New Industry in Marine Sector and Electronic Components of EV Systems, and thus will be given government funding of KRW 4.6 billion and KRW 2.3 billion, respectively. For the full-fledged implementation of the selected projects, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Ulsan Metropolitan City, Korea Institute for Advanced of Technology (KIAT), and Ulsan Institute for Regional Program Evaluation will recruit beneficiary companies and provide them adequate assistance.
Selected as a sub-project, the infrastructure construction project in relation to seawater-based batteries and marine equipment demonstration, will be carried out jointly by UNIST, Korea Institute of Ocean Science and Technology (KIOST), Korea Marine Equipment Research Institute (KOMERI), Korea Testing and Research Institute (KTR), Ulsan IT Industry Promotion Agency (UIPA), Korea Marine Equipment Association (KOMEA), and Korea East-West Power Co., Ltd.
In addition to government funding, these institutions plan to invest a total of KRW 15.6 billion over two years. Based on UNIST’s seawater battery technology, this project aims to promote the advancement of eco-friendly energy-based marine equipment industry. Through this, they expect to restore the regional industrial ecosystem through enhancement of the innovation capacity of the shipbuilding and offshore marine industry, which Ulsan’s core industry. This will also contribute to increased sales and employment growth in beneficiary companies, and invigorate the local economy.
